To the Venerable Hierarchs of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops:
Masters, bless!
Your Beatitude, Your Eminences, and Your Graces doubtless are aware of the following:
- Volodymyr Zelensky is severely and unjustly persecuting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).
- Metropolitan Tikhon of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) recently sent a supportive message to Met. Onuphry of the UOC, upon the 12th anniversary of his enthronement. The UOC is the canonical Church in Ukraine, despite ongoing, state-sponsored violence and usurpation of its properties.
- On Sept. 26, the trustees of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine at the World Trade Center plan to give Zelensky the 2026 “Beacon of Hope” Award in New York City.
What the Reverend Hierarchs of the Holy Assembly of Bishops may not realize is that many Orthodox Christians consider the Zelensky event sheer madness. Our blog is collecting petition signatures against the event:
News of our petition has appeared on the UOJ, Pravda, Helleniscope, YouTube, and Greek-language blogs, among others. As of this writing, our petition has garnered more than 1,300 signatures from America and abroad.
Further, a member of St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church in New Jersey has filed a criminal complaint, challenging the legality of the Zelensky event:
The most common question we receive about this impending event is: Where are the bishops?
Well-informed Orthodox laity realize that American bishops are reluctant to involve themselves in other jurisdictions’ affairs. Normally, that discretion is warranted.
However, the Zelensky event is unique because it implicitly endorses Zelensky’s persecution of Christians and his war in Ukraine, which Americans abhor but are forced to continue financing.
In summary, the proposed award will be bestowed upon an atheistic tyrant, at a ritzy restaurant, under the auspices of a Greek Orthodox Church and shrine that resides upon the ashes of the heinous 9/11 attack, and will occur while America is embroiled in a war on behalf of this tyrant.
The silence, thus far, of our Reverend Hierarchs on the event’s improprieties betrays the persecuted Ukrainians; all of those killed in the Russo-Ukrainian War; the American laity who pray for Ukraine while also coercively paying taxes that fund its destruction; those slaughtered at Ground Zero 25 years ago; and America’s longstanding religious freedom.
The Zelensky event is so outrageous and ostentatious, such a desecration, so lacking in common sense and decency, that even the heathen must be agog.
We humbly call upon America’s Orthodox bishops to publicly denounce and repudiate Zelensky’s “Beacon of Hope” Award and to insist that the event planners choose a worthy non-political honoree instead.
We further call upon America’s Orthodox Christians to share and discuss this letter in all forums.
Kissing your right hands and humbly requesting your archpastoral blessings,
The Writers at Orthodox Reflections
Readers, please copy, personalize, and send this letter to your own hierarchs.
The Zelensky event is so outrageous and ostentatious, such a desecration, so lacking in common sense and decency, that even the heathen must be agog.
Your petition contains false information about elections in Ukraine, which can’t be held under martial law. Nobody “canceled” Ukraine’s elections except the russian invaders. Claiming President Zelensky is not democratically elected is false on its face. President Zelenskyy took office as a result of a democratic presidential election in 2019. The UOC even showed Metropolitan Onufriy casting his own ballots in both rounds of that election.
russia’s culpability in bombing UOC churches and murdering their believers. russia took one UOC priest prisoner from Kherson, tortured him, starved him, and pulled him further into occupied territory when Kherson was liberated. He was only freed in a prisoner exchange. Another priest from the Zaporizhzhia region has been imprisoned since 2023. It took almost a year after his forced disappearance to find out if he was dead or alive. russia convicted him on absurd charges of espionage and illegally transferred him to a prison inside russia. russia is responsible for torturing, maiming, and killing many other UOC clergy and believers, but you don’t seem concerned about that.
Almost 100% chance this was posted by a Fed Bot. Nice to know they care.
As I’ve explained repeatedly, I’m an American. I’m not funding Russia’s side, “Courtney.”
Tweet from UOC lawyer, Robert Amsterdam
https://x.com/robertamsterdam/status/2092746869562601808
Headline : Evangelical Protestant leaders of the ruling Republican Party proclaim that Evangelical Protestant Christian populations and political leaders of America and the EU/NATO are Zionist — and, by their own statements, do not consider Orthodox and Catholic Christians of Ukraine, Russia, Greece, Cyprus, Europe, Gaza, Palestine, Lebanon, the Middle East, and America to be “Christian” because they reject Jewish Zionism.
Mike Huckabee former Baptist minister, Governor of Arkansas, and currently US ambasador of Israel and leader of the Donald Trump adminstration and Republican party declared:
“I couldn’t understand why anyone who takes on the moniker ‘Christian’ would not also be a Zionist. Personally I’m part of a global and growing Evangelical Protestant tradition that believes the authority of Scripture and the faithfulness of God in keeping His covenants. That includes His covenant with Abraham and the Jewish people to make Israel the dominant nation of the Middle East and world. My Christian faith is built on the foundation of Judaism, and without it, you cannot call yourself a Christian.”
Orthodox Patriarchs responded that Christian Zionism distorts the Gospel, replaces Christ’s teachings with political ideology, endangers Christians in the Holy Land, and is not accepted by Orthodox or Catholic Churches.
Haaretz reported Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said:
“Zionism contradicts human rights.”
Haaretz further described Zionism as ultranationalist, exclusionary, racist in structure, colonialist, and incompatible with universal human‑rights norms.
GOARCH leadership aligned with Evangelical Protestant Christian Zionist networks and Jewish Zionist political interests by honoring Zionist Zelensky , Trump, and Netanyahu at consecrated Orthodox sites — even as Orthodox Christians were persecuted , murdered and terrorised in Ukraine, Russia , Gaza, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and most of Europe and Middle East by them .
Greek Orthodox Chrstian of Greece and Cyprus .. alarmed by church and government acceptance of Evangelical Protestants Christian and Jewist Zionist identity and alliance with the Jewish Zionist State of Israel and America …….
An Open Appeal to GOARCH and the EP: Please Stop Supporting the Violent Persecutors of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
ON AUGUST 24, 2026 BY FRLYNCH
Link:
https://inklesspen.blog/2026/08/24/an-open-appeal-to-goarch-and-the-ep-please-stop-supporting-the-violent-persecutors-of-the-ukrainian-orthodox-church/
Per Fr. Zechariah’s request, we just published this.
Could Zelensky Suffer Diem’s Fate?
by Ted Galen Carpenter | Jul 24, 2026 | 17 Comments
Excerpt:
U.S. and NATO leaders have waged a multi-year propaganda campaign to convince Western publics that Ukraine is a splendid democracy and that President Volodymyr Zelensky is an extremely popular elected leader who epitomizes those values. Multiple aspects of that carefully crafted image are untrue. Ukraine is a corrupt, autocratic state that maintains strict censorship and brutally represses political opponents. When Zelensky’s term ended in 2024, he and his obedient followers in parliament simply postponed elections indefinitely. Even absent adverse election result, though, there are ample signs that NATO’s much-lauded hero has alienated Ukraine’s public.
The systematic campaign to present Zelensky as a hero is crucial to NATO’s overall portrayal of the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war as nothing less than an existential struggle between freedom and dictatorship – a conflict with truly global implications. New York Timescolumnist David French contends that “for the first time in my adult life, the moral and strategic heart of the defense of liberal democracy doesn’t beat in Washington. It doesn’t beat in London or Paris or Berlin or Ottawa, either. It’s in Kyiv, where a courageous leader and a courageous people have picked up the torch America has dropped.”
Western leaders have redoubled their propaganda initiatives efforts in recent months to sell the proposition that underdog Ukraine is beginning to win the military contest against Russia. Despite a few flashy Ukrainian military successes, however, the overall picture of an eventual Russian victory in a war of attrition remains essentially the same.
Domestic developments in Ukraine even more strongly suggest that Zelensky may be closer to the precipice of disaster than to the summit of victory. Indeed, his position bears an eerie resemblance to that of an earlier U.S. client and political darling, South Vietnam’s Ngo Dinh Diem. U.S. officials gradually soured on Diem, however, and in 1963 they quietly encouraged South Vietnamese military leaders to oust him. Those generals did so on November 2, killing Diem as well as his brother and chief adviser, Ngo Dinh Nhu.
The Diem episode highlights a broader theme. U.S. foreign clients who become inconvenient to Washington have not fared well over the decades. Given the recent adverse domestic developments with respect to Zelensky, he has ample reason to worry about his long-term survival prospects.
Link:
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_galen_carpenter/2026/07/23/could-zelensky-suffer-diems-fate/
189 Orthodox Christian parishes in New York & New Jersey:
Are you informing and organizing yourselves, and planning for a peaceful protest on Sept. 26 in NYC?
List of parishes:
https://www.assemblyofbishops.org/directories/parishes?radius=50&search_address=New%20York%2C%20New%20York&search_coordinates=(40.7127753%2C%20-74.0059728)&search_error=OK&searchType=proximity
From Fr. Daniel on X:
Update on the attack on the Brethren of the Sviatohirsk Holy Dormition Lavra
On August 23, 2026, around 11:00 a.m., an attack on the residents of the monastery took place near St. Nicholas Church on the territory of the Sviatohirsk Holy Mountain Lavra. A group of unidentified persons carried out the attack.
As a result of the attack, Monk Barsanuphius (Turyansky) died. Monk Gregory and refugee Andriy Kiriienko, who lives at the monastery, sustained injuries.
The incident came to light around 11:15 a.m. when the injured Monk Gregory reached the brotherhood cells to report it. The brethren immediately notified law enforcement, and the police arrived at the scene.
The brethren transported the wounded to a hospital in Sloviansk for necessary medical care. Grigory suffered about four stab wounds, including a lung injury. Andriy Kiriienko is in serious condition and also has a lung wound. Both lost a lot of blood.Later, workers transferred the wounded to Kharkiv for further treatment, where doctors are currently caring for them.
Investigators have opened a criminal case regarding the attack and are continuing their work.On August 23, after the all-night vigil in the Dormition Cathedral, the Lavra brethren held a memorial service for the newly departed Monk Barsanuphius.
We ask everyone to pray for the newly departed Monk Barsanuphius and for the health and speedy recovery of Monk Gregory and Andriy Kiriienko.
OK, everybody, we’re obviously going medieval, so where are the knights patrolling and defending monasteries and churches?
HEADLINESS : No negotiations with terrorists’ – Putin on Zelensky’s threat to civil aviation …..
The Ukrainian leader Zelensky to be honored by Bartolomew and Greek Orthodox Archdiocese , Trustees, and State Department with Beacon of Hope and Peace awards on September 26th , and coincides with UN General Assembly meeting , has warned that international civilian aviation will no longer be safe in Russian skies!
With all due respect for President Putin, …..ALL countries and Organizations like the Patriarchs of the Greek Orthodox Churches and State department who now support Ukraine and Israel .. are now ” DESIGNATED STATE SPONSORS OF TERRORISM , TERRORISTS AND WAR CRIMINALS OF ORTHODOX CHURCHES , CLERGY , NUNS , MONKS , STAFF OF THE RUSSIAN , GREEK , UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX SPEAKING FAITHFULL OF THE UKRIAINE , RUSSIA GAZA, LEBANON, SYRIA, PALESTINE, JERUSALEM, IRAQ, AND MOST OF EASTERN EUROPE AND MIDDLE EAST …
THEY ARE:
US
UK
FRANCE
GERMANY
Greece,
Cyprus and all EU
SO MY QUESTION IS: BY TALKING TO THE PATRIARCHS OF THE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OR THE US OR ANY COUNTRY THAT SUPPORTS ZELENSKY OR NETANYAHUE IN THE UKRAINE, AND ISRAEL IS THAT NEGOTIATING ? OR JUST LISTENING TO THEIR (WESTERN) LIES.
THE US AND NATO ARE NOW NOT CAPABLE OF SPEAKING TRUTH, OR HONORING ANY
COMMITMENTS OR AGREEMENTS.
THIS IS MORE MATERIAL EVIDENCE FOR EVERY GREEK ORTHODOX AND ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS OF THE WORLD TO MARCH TO THE HONORING OF ZELENSKY BY THE PATRIARCHS AND TRUSTEES OF THE GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA AT THE SHRINE OR WHEREVER THE VENUE IS ….AND GREET ZELENSKY AND THE ARCHDIOCESE TRUSTES, PATRIARCH , STATE DEPARTMENT AND PUBLIC OFFICIAL OF THE U.S GOVERNMENT, GREEK MEDIA , AND ALL UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS ATTENDING THE HONORING OF ZELENSKYH WITH AN “ARREST WARRANT” BY THE ORTHODOX CITIZENS OF NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK AND COMMUNITIES OF AMERICA FOR BEING DESIGNATED SPONSORS OF TERRORISM AND STATE SPONSORED TERRORISM BY THE ZELENSKY, NETANYAHUE , AND THE U.S HOUSE AND SENARE LEADERS OF THE RULING POLIITCAL PARTIES OF AMERICA AND EU…!
FURTHERMORE , UNTIL THE PATRIARHS OF THE GREEK ORTODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA ARE FULLY REMOVED AND EXCOMMUNICATED FROM THE ORTHODOX CHURCH .. “ALL STEWARDS AND PARISHIONERS OF ALL ORTHODOX CHURCHES SHOULD WITHHOLD FROM THE ANNUAL PLEDGES TO THEIR CHURCHES…30 % OF ALL ANNUAL DONATIONS, AND REPRESENTS THE EQUIVALENT TO THE “30 PIECES OF SILVERS PROVIDED TO JUDAS BY THE HIGH PRIEST OF JUDEA ..TO BETRAY THE PRINCE OF PEACE ..CHRIST! THERE IS NO NEGOTIATING WITH TERRORIST WHO USE THE ORIGINAL CHURCH OF CHRIST TO CRUCIFY CHRISTIANS FOR 30 PIECES OF SILVER!
As an Orthodox Christian within the Antiochian jurisdiction who gladly signed the petition, I was pleased to see this appeal to the Synod of Bishops. I hold out nominal hope they will put their jurisdictions aside to do the right thing as our shepherds in defending the faith against this appalling level of greed and corruption. Do keep OR readers informed as events unfold.
As a side note, the fundraiser at St Nicholas Cathedral honoring Zelensky may qualify as electioneering — a violation of their 501(c)3 (non-profit) status, and therefore worthy of reporting to the Secretary of State of New York. That could lead to a hefty fine, an immediate demand to cease, and more exposure to the faithful on your part of this disgusting affair.
“The Issue is not a Greek Orthodox and Orthodox Issue , but an issue for Catholic, Protestant, and all Christian denominations … where persecution , Terrorism , War crimes and oppression of human and religious rights of Christians Churches and faithful are acceptable consequences of U.S , Israeli , EU and Ukranian undeclared Wars” And therefore all the attendes of this honor ..will be deemed “State Sponsors of Terrorism” !
Concerned Greek Orthodox Christian Citizens of N.J . for the rule of God’s an Man’s
Yes sign the Petition and support The criminal complaint filed by the Concerned Christian Citizens of New Jersey which marks only the beginning of a broader prosecution effort. Whether the Archdiocese cancels its dinner or proceeds is now irrelevant — the evidence has surpassed the threshold of protest and entered the realm of legal action. The complaint initiates a process aimed at exposing a coordinated network involving the Archdiocese, State Department officials, Political operatives, and media institutions. These actors have jointly promoted a false narrative about the Ukraine conflict, shielding Western involvement in the 2014 overthrow of Ukraine’s elected government while glorifying Volodymyr Zelensky and concealing his government’s persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This is not journalism; it is a deliberate campaign of misinformation, disinformation, and censorship. Central to this network are specific Greek and Greek‑diaspora newspapers that have repeatedly glorified Zelensky while omitting every major controversy surrounding his regime. ProtoThema, CNN Greece, TA NEA, SKAI, The National Herald, and The Greek Herald have all published glowing portrayals of Zelensky as a heroic defender of democracy, a noble wartime leader, and a grateful partner of Greece. Yet none of these outlets mention his government’s shuttering of media outlets, arrests of canonical Orthodox clergy, seizures of churches, or suppression of religious communities. Their coverage aligns perfectly with EU and NATO messaging, protecting the reputations of Western officials — including Victoria Nuland, Geoffrey Pyatt, and key EU commissioners — whose actions contributed to Ukraine’s destabilization, civil war, and the subsequent religious persecution that followed. This pattern of selective reporting constitutes malicious shielding, a form of media complicity that obstructs accountabilityand manufactures consent for geopolitical agendas.
Ukrainian Official Condemns UOC Pilgrims Marching to Pochaiv
Author: Tobias Straney
Excerpts:
KYIV — As reported by UOJ-Ukraine, Roman Malenkov, director of the Ancient Kyiv National Reserve, has sharply criticized the traditional Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) Cross procession from Kamianets-Podilskyi to the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra, complaining that no one has been able to stop thousands of Orthodox Christians from making the pilgrimage.
“They are marching again, and it is absolutely horrifying,” Malenkov wrote on Facebook. He continued: “Neither the war, nor Russian missiles, nor the Ukrainian authorities – who are behaving rather spinelessly in this case – can stop them. Isn’t this a mass gathering, which is prohibited by law?” He also claimed that “a significant number of them remain pro-Russian waiters,” and wrote, “Their level of organization and sheer numbers are simply terrifying. And this is in western Ukraine.” […]
Participants report that the procession is already nearly 2 miles long — about three quarters of a mile longer than last year — and has grown even larger during its first four days, making this year’s pilgrimage noticeably bigger than the previous one. Particularly large numbers of young people are among the pilgrims. Now in its fourth day, the procession has required participants to walk as much as 20–25 miles per day, beginning as early as 3:30–4 a.m.
Link:
https://uoj.news/news/ukrainian-official-condemns-uoc-pilgrims-marching-to-pochaiv/
Helleniscope re-posts Orthodox Reflection’s citizen petition and plans in-person protest of the Zelensky event in NYC, should it still occur. See here:
https://www.helleniscope.com/2026/08/21/sign-the-petition-against-honoring-zelensky/
Please send Orthodox Reflections photos/videos of the protest, if you attend.
American opinion piece from 2024:
Raise your privileged hand if you’re willing to ‘fight to the last Ukrainian’
BY DOUGLAS MACKINNON, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 02/17/24
Excerpt:
Hey, what’s a million-plus dead and wounded when you live thousands of miles away in a bubble of arrogant privilege?
In August 2023, U.S. officials estimated that approximately 500,000 Russian and Ukrainian troops had been killed or wounded since Russia’s invasion in February 2022. Back in November, the United Nations Human Rights Office said more than 10,000 Ukrainian civilians had died.
Recently, a former intelligence official told me that troop casualties are now over 1 million, and that the U.N. estimate of civilian deaths is dramatically higher. Over 1 million dead and wounded men, women and children.
Link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/4473663-raise-your-privileged-hand-if-youre-willing-to-fight-to-the-last-ukrainian/
Dear Trustees, Archons, GOARCH, et alia, CNN is giving you air cover to do the right thing and dump Zelensky from your dinner. Why don’t you seize upon it?
Zelensky ‘is losing his credibility in Ukraine,’ says activist
https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/20/tv/video/amanpour-kaleniuk
Ukraine’s ousted defense minister calls for wartime elections in bombshell address
https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/18/europe/ukraine-ousted-defense-minister-fedorov-elections-latam-intl
Thank you for this very important information and still yet another reminder of the reality of this egregious event.
It’s so hard to believe that the church hierarchy can’t or refuses to recognize what is happening , so much corruption and acceptance of evil.
I did sign the petition to help stop this hideous celebration of one of Satan’s minions, I am praying it doesn’t go forward.
Thank you for your support and prayers!
“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.” -Dietrich Bonhoeffer